MANILA — The Philippine Premier League (PPL) announced on Tuesday that it will move its season opener a month later.
"The Philippine Premier League will postpone the launch of the 2019 season to April 27," the league said in a statement.
The announcement came after the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) on Saturday denied Mendiola and Air Force of club licenses, the needed document for them to be considered professional teams, along with España United.
"After evaluation, the First Instance Body denied the PFF License application of Mendiola Football Club, España United Football Club, and Philippine Air Force Football Club for failure to comply with all the criteria set out in the PFF Club Licensing Regulations," the PFF said in a separate statement.
Mendiola and Air Force were supposed to play in the initially scheduled opener at the Rizal Memorial Stadium on Saturday night.
"It is hoped that with the additional time the two teams can be granted provisional club licenses that will permit them to join the league this season," the PPL statement read.
"We are taking this step to comply with the directives of the Philippine Football Federation, our sanctioning body," it added. (PNA)
